What It Comes Down To

There is no real solution that involves voting for president, only band-aids

What am I Really Going to Do?

So, what am I really going to do on election day? First, I think Biden is a terrible person to lead this country, and so is almost anyone the Democratic Party would put forward. They only give us people beholden to corporations, Israel, and the military-industrial complex. (Which is why Bernie Sanders isn't president even though he would've done the most for Americans.)

With those kinds of presidents (and congress members), there will only be so much progress that capitalism will allow.

I truly believe that money and power corrupt even people with the best intentions, and so inevitably, almost all high-level leaders in this country can be pressured into doing the wrong thing. But ONLY if we, as citizens, give up our power by remaining divided and failing to take large-scale action.

Back to the election. Because I am white and will not be one of the people most harmed by a Trump administration, I'll vote for harm reduction by voting for Biden or whoever the Democratic nominee happens to be. But remember: harm reduction is still harm. People are being harmed right now under Biden and will continue to be harmed if he’s reelected (or any other Democrat is elected. Along with his unconditional support for Israel, Biden still does not understand that more police do not equal a safer populace. In fact, it's quite the opposite. Police are to make rich people feel safer at our expense and to protect corporate property. How else could you explain how many times someone calls the police to protect them, but the police end up shooting the caller instead? In what other first-world country does that happen?

Corporations capture more and more of our government every day and convince our elected officials to pass laws that are bad for Americans. Unless we rise together for things like general strikes, boycotts, and mass protests, Citizens United and our corrupt Supreme Court will continue to erode our democracy regardless of who is president. We don't live in a democracy right now because corporations have unlimited influence over elected officials, while each citizen is allowed a small voice. I don't know what you call where we are or where we're headed, but it involves impoverishment of the working class, the crushing of opposition and the forfeiting of people's first amendment rights, surveillance, militarizing the police… and that’s just under Democrats! And Democrats are who I'm looking to to help fix this mess because the Republicans sure aren't going to, right?

The American people deserve better and can not take much more of this.

🌱 Learning & Growing

Trigger Warning re: Pedophilia

Someone on NextDoor (a social platform that connects you with your neighbors) posted a screenshot of the number of registered sex offenders living within 5 miles of her. It was like 1200 people. Another person in the thread posted a link to an episode of 60 Minutes Australia about a trailer park in my county here in Florida that exclusively houses registered sex offenders. If you would like to flex your empathy muscles, I recommend you watch this video. There is a neuroscientist who argues that pedophilia is an addiction, like heroin or alcohol, and it sure feels that way to me. That is not an excuse, but it’s an explanation that can help us deal with it.

📑 Project Updates

How to Find Joy in a Capitalist Hellscape

I'm paying for a lot of services right now so I can see what works for book writing, editing, formatting, publishing, and marketing. None of them are wildly expensive, and they all have a 30-day refund policy. Atticus is the formatting software that I just used for my booklet. Publisher Rocket is a marketing tool built specifically to analyze keywords, categories, and competitors on Amazon. It works through an API to provide statistics about how successful you might be selling your book if you use specific keywords. I'm testing it out with my booklet. Then, I also paid for a year's membership to PodcastGuests.com so I could have preference in trying to get on various podcasts. They send you regular emails with opportunities, so I'm hoping to set up some appearances.

This is all a grand experiment right now, and I am enjoying learning how to do it in the most effective way possible.

I also bought a font that looks really great on book covers, especially for my name. Speaking of book covers, this has morphed a bit, and I'm really liking it. I think I’m calling it good and done. I’m the kind of person who could tweak something forever, but I need to get this cover out into the world for marketing.

Incidentally, because I’ve never done this before and wanted to explore all my options, I responded to an offer of a free cover mockup from one of the publishing websites. I thought, “What could it hurt?” What they gave me back was very “commercial” looking and was clearly made with AI. It did not fit my book at all, but I was happy I tried it so I could see what kind of results those services produced.

You're a Nice Guy, But You’re Bad in Bed

Well, I did it! I just re-published a slightly extended version of this booklet as an ebook and, for the first time ever, as a printed book.

I used Atticus to format it and learned a lot about that book-formatting software. It came out mostly the way I wanted, and I've since gotten some additional pointers to use for the full-length book.

I ordered two “author copies" from Amazon that arrived yesterday. I love the funny text I added to the back cover. (I had to create a back cover because it had never been printed before.)

The bummer was that I kind of lost my Amazon reviews. When I tried to upload the new ebook version on top of the old one (which is what you're supposed to do), I got an error because, apparently, I'd made the first ebook operate like a graphic novel instead of a regular, continuously-flowing book of text. For the new version, I wanted it to work more like a traditional book, but you can't upload one type on top of another.

So, I had to create a whole new book on Amazon that has zero reviews. If you're willing, I'd love for you to drop a review on the new ebook listing. (This works great if you've already read it, if you have Kindle Unlimited to read it free right now, or you can wait and buy a print copy to read and then slip it in your ex's mailbox.) The print copy will take a few days to appear.

Something I also learned in this process is that I’m actually going to make LESS money on Amazon with the print book than I will on IngramSpark. On Amazon, I was only going to make $0.70 per book (the same percentage as if I’d hired a publisher!), so I raised the price of the print copy on Amazon to $5.75 but will keep it at my desired $4.99 on all other platforms, including Bookshop.org.

When this was only an ebook, it was impossible to give it to someone, especially anonymously. Soon, you can send a discreet copy from Bookshop.org or Amazon to someone who needs a gentle hint. I’m interested to see how it performs with some ads.

⏰️ Currently

⛩️ Feeling a bit of cabin fever and trying to figure out someplace I could go for a day to refresh my spirit. Maybe an overnight in a pretty place with a pool or cool spring.

🌡 Really missing my outdoor time that is being stifled by the stifling heat and humidity.

🦙 Trying not to get sucked into the drama of the world like so many people are.